kinkachy000
Songster
- Mar 18, 2018
- 127
- 170
- 111
Hello,
I recently purchased 12 various bantam chicks from a local feedstore on Saturday. They gave me an additional one for free because they felt it was close to passing, and I agreed to give it a chance. So I came home with 13 chicks last night. Since I brought them home at 4pm, two of them have passed away (including the free one) and another one, since today, seems like it's on the verge of death. I have never had this many deaths after purchasing chicks, only one previous! The only change is where I bought them; I usually get chicks from the Tractor Supply, but decided to go to the local one since I was able to pick the specific bantam breeds I was wanting. I'm not sure if that's a coincidence or not.
The chicks that have passed, and the dying one, cannot be more than two weeks old - I would even say a week old tops. They have all shown the same symptoms. All of them suddenly became very lame, not being able to hold themselves up. They just fall over and lay on their chest, with their head laying to the side. All of them refuse water or food; I've dipped their beaks, tried eggs, and mashed their food, but they are not interested in anything. None of them had pasty butt either. The only thing the chicks do is sleep! It's like they can't even open their eyes up anymore. They just lay there, eyes closed, breathing and at times chirping softly, before they fall back asleep. I can't get them up and moving, or even awake long enough to water them.
Their brooder is at the right temperature, and they are on medicated chick feed and drinking non-chlorinated water. So I have no clue what is going wrong with them. They are up, running, eating, drinking, and then suddenly they can't even stay awake or move anymore, and then quietly pass away. It was like a flip of a coin. Two of them passed away in my hands; they were just sleeping and suddenly weren't there anymore. Since I have no clue what is going on, I have no clue how to save this dying chick and it's so hard to just sit by and watch her fade. I called the feed store and all they could tell me was that they may not have gotten enough nutrients from transportation, but I don't know how true this may be. Which is why I came here. Has this happened to anyone else? What do you think is happening to them? I have kept the sickly one separated from the others in case this is contagious. I will answer any other questions you may need from me, to help solve this mystery. Please help me!
Also as an edit, here's a picture of the possibly dying chick. This is what she has looked like constantly from around 10am this morning. Yesterday and early this morning, she was running around and acting normal, but then suddenly she was lethargic and not eating or drinking. I can't remember her breed, but the other two who passed were a different breed, Old English reds, so it's not just the particular hatch.
I recently purchased 12 various bantam chicks from a local feedstore on Saturday. They gave me an additional one for free because they felt it was close to passing, and I agreed to give it a chance. So I came home with 13 chicks last night. Since I brought them home at 4pm, two of them have passed away (including the free one) and another one, since today, seems like it's on the verge of death. I have never had this many deaths after purchasing chicks, only one previous! The only change is where I bought them; I usually get chicks from the Tractor Supply, but decided to go to the local one since I was able to pick the specific bantam breeds I was wanting. I'm not sure if that's a coincidence or not.
The chicks that have passed, and the dying one, cannot be more than two weeks old - I would even say a week old tops. They have all shown the same symptoms. All of them suddenly became very lame, not being able to hold themselves up. They just fall over and lay on their chest, with their head laying to the side. All of them refuse water or food; I've dipped their beaks, tried eggs, and mashed their food, but they are not interested in anything. None of them had pasty butt either. The only thing the chicks do is sleep! It's like they can't even open their eyes up anymore. They just lay there, eyes closed, breathing and at times chirping softly, before they fall back asleep. I can't get them up and moving, or even awake long enough to water them.
Their brooder is at the right temperature, and they are on medicated chick feed and drinking non-chlorinated water. So I have no clue what is going wrong with them. They are up, running, eating, drinking, and then suddenly they can't even stay awake or move anymore, and then quietly pass away. It was like a flip of a coin. Two of them passed away in my hands; they were just sleeping and suddenly weren't there anymore. Since I have no clue what is going on, I have no clue how to save this dying chick and it's so hard to just sit by and watch her fade. I called the feed store and all they could tell me was that they may not have gotten enough nutrients from transportation, but I don't know how true this may be. Which is why I came here. Has this happened to anyone else? What do you think is happening to them? I have kept the sickly one separated from the others in case this is contagious. I will answer any other questions you may need from me, to help solve this mystery. Please help me!
Also as an edit, here's a picture of the possibly dying chick. This is what she has looked like constantly from around 10am this morning. Yesterday and early this morning, she was running around and acting normal, but then suddenly she was lethargic and not eating or drinking. I can't remember her breed, but the other two who passed were a different breed, Old English reds, so it's not just the particular hatch.
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